Shower construction

ABSTRACT

A shower construction, comprises a water supply pipe having a longitudinally extending water delivery bore which is closed at its outer end and which includes a transversely extending bore discharge passage connecting the delivery bore adjacent the closed end and a shower head which is provided with a receiving bore so as to receive the closed end of the water supply pipe and to cover the discharge passage. The shower head is rotatable in respect to the supply pipe, and it has a plurality of angularly spaced radially extending water discharge conduits which terminate in a distinctive discharge fitting at their outer ends. The water head is rotatable to align a selective discharge conduit and fitting with the water supply pipe water delivery bore.

United States Patent 1 Grohe SHOWER CONSTRUCTION [75] Inventor: KlausGrohe, Schiltach/Black Forest, Germany [73] Assignee: Hans Grohe KG,Shiltach/Schur,

Germany 22 Filed: Mar. 23, 1973 21 Appl.No.:344,225

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data Mar. 29, 1972 Germany 2215344[52] US. Cl. 239/394, 239/587 [51] Int. Cl B051) 1/16 [58] Field OfSearch 239/390, 394, 587

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 380,691 4/1888 Piper 239/3941,197,044 9/1916 1,554,521 9/1925 3,094,283 6/1963 3,112,885 12/1963Bell et al 239/394 Ill]! W [451 Aug. 20, 1974 Pecka 239/587 X Gassaway239/394 5 7 ABSTRACT A shower construction, comprises a water supplypipe having a longitudinally extending water delivery bore which isclosed at its outer end and which includes a transversely extending boredischarge passage connecting the delivery bore adjacent the closed endand a shower head which is provided with a receiving bore so as toreceive the closed end of the water supply pipe and to cover thedischarge passage. The shower head is rotatable in respect to the supplypipe, and it has a plurality of angularly spaced radially extendingwater discharge conduits which terminate in a distinctive dischargefitting at their outer ends. The water head is rotatable to align aselective discharge conduit and fitting with the water supply pipe waterdelivery bore.

4 Claims, 7 Drawing Figures 1 SHOWER CONSTRUCTION BACKGROUND OF THEINVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention relates in general tothe construction of shower fittings and, in particular, to a new anduseful shower construction for a shower or bath fixture which includes ahead portion which is rotatable around a supply pipe and which isprovided with one or more distinctive heads which are selectivelyconnectable to the supply pipe for the discharge of water therethrough.

2. Description of the Prior Art In addition to the well-known sieve orscreen-type shower heads whose discharge includes a plurality of jetorifices arranged around a circular surface, there are many other typesof shower head constructions, such as showers with nozzle jet heads andfroth sprayers. Among the nozzle jet heads, there are those whichproduce a single highly concentrated hard water jet and those which havea regulatable spray effect. The froth sprayer has the property that itis provided with means for greatly aerating the water jet before itleaves the head thus making it very soft and imparting a bubbling orfrothing effect to the water as it impinges on the skin. Showers of thisnature are finding increased use in such devices as cosmetic treatmentdevices and particularly for therapeutic treatment of various diseasesand, in such cases, certain jet properties are preferred, depending onthe disease to be treated, or the skin sensitivity of the respectiveperson. A disadvantage of the known showers is that they have only onesprayer head with one spray discharge fitting so that the dischargingwater stream can be adapted to only one specific skin sensitivity or onespecific therapy. In order to remedy this disadvantage, it has beenconsidered possible to install several different shower heads, forexample in a shower booth, or in a bathroom, but for cost reasons, thishas usually not been feasible.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the present invention, thereis provided a shower which includes a single shower head which isregulatable in order to produce distinctive water discharge streams. Theinvention provides a shower head which is rotatable around itsassociated water supply pipe and it is provided with one or morepassages which may be aligned with a discharge bore of the supply pipein order to provide flow of the fluid through a selected head fittingwhich produces a distinctive water stream discharge. The inventionprovides an inexpensive shower construction in which the installationcost, as well as the cost of the parts, are very low. The head includesfittings which are capable of producing several different jetcharacteristics of the water stream which is discharged and which willcorrespond to the individuals wishes or to the therapy instructionswhich are desirable. In the preferred arrangement, the shower head isrotatably mounted on the supply pipe or any extension thereof. The headmay be directly rotatable on a fixed end of the delivery pipe or on anextension thereof which may be pivoted tothe main supply pipe.

In a preferred form of the invention, the shower head is designed as atruncated pyramid shaped hollow body which is rotatably mounted by meansof a hub portion thereof on the closed end of a supply pipe. The supplypipe is advantageously provided with a radial bore which is surroundedby a ring of packing which abuts against the interior surface of thehollow head and the head may be rotated to align a selective dischargeconduit with the transverse bore of the water delivery conduit. In endelevation, the shower head is advantageously polygonal, such as oftriangular form, and its sides are each provided with a separate showerhead fitting. Each fitting produces a distinctive water spray for jetdischarge and the three separate fittings may advantageously comprise,for example, a sieve sprayer, a nozzle sprayer, and a froth sprayer.

Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide an improvedshower construction which includes a head which is rotatable in respectto a supply pipe and which carries a plurality of different showerfittings which are each separately communicable with the supply bore ofthe supply conduit so that the liquid may be discharged selectivelythrough a particular type of shower head fitting.

A further object of the invention is to provide a shower with a headfitting of generally triangular configuration having side walls whichcontain separate shower head fittings and which are separatelyconnectable through intemal passages to the supply conduit.

A further object of the invention is to provide a shower which is simplein design, rugged in construction, and economical to manufacture.

The various features of novelty which characterize the invention arepointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming apart of this disclosure. For a better understanding of the invention,its operating advantages and specific objects attained by its uses,reference should be had to the accompanying drawings and descriptivematter in which there are illustrated preferred embodiments of theinvention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In the Drawings: FIG. 1 is alongitudinal sectional view through a shower constructed in accordancewith the invention;

FIG. 2 is a front end elevational view of the shower head shown in FIG.1;

FIG. 3 is a section taken along the line IIIIII of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a section taken along the line lV-IV of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a section taken along the line VV of FIG.

FIG. 6 is a view similar to FIG. 1 of another embodiment of theinvention; and

FIG. 7 is an end elevational view of the shower shown in FIG. 6.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring to thedrawings in particular, the invention embodied therein in FIGS. 1 to 5,comprises a hand shower, generally designated 1, which includes a showerhandle portion 2 and a shower head portion, generally designated 3, bothof which are designed as hollow bodies. The rear end of the hand shower1 includes a threaded shoulder 4 for the attachment of the shower to awater supply, such as a flexible hose, as is customary for hand showers.

In accordance with the invention, the interior of the handle portion 2includes a water supply pipe 5 having a longitudinally extending bore 5'for the passage of water therethrough. The outer shell portion of handle2 ends at an end face 6 against which the outer shell 7 of the showerhead 3 applies. The pipe 5 extends into a receiving hub 8 of the showerhead 3. The pipe 5 includes a closed end 10 which extends into the hub 8and this end has a threaded bore 11 which receives a holding screw 12which extends through the head 3. The screw 12 holds the shower head 3on the water supply pipe 5 so that the shower head 3 is rotatable aboutthe axis of the pipe 5. The pipe 5 also includes a radially extendingbore 13 which communicates with the bore 5 at the outer end thereof andwhich defines a transverse bore discharge for the water. A ring packing14 seals the inner wall of the hub 8 from the outer wall of the pipe end10 which extends into it.

It is thus seen in FIG. 2, that the shower head 3 has a triangular formin end elevation and approximately resembles a truncated pyramid. Thehead 3 includes three side walls 16, 17 and 18, which extend obliquelyto the longitudinal axis and which carrya different or distinctive waterdischarge fitting 19, or 21. In the embodiment shown, the jet body 19 isa froth sprayer which produces a highly aerated soft full water jet. Thejet body 20 is a sieve sprayer, and comprises several rings 22 which arenested together, and which present fluted jet orifices 23 on theircircumference. The jet body 21 is a nozzle sprayer, and this produces ahighly concentrated thin water jet. Each of the jet bodies 19, 20 and 21connects to a respective water discharge conduit 24, 25 and 26. The head3 is constructed so that it may be rotated to cause a selected waterdischarge conduit 24, 25 or 26 to align with the radial bore 13 at acertain angle of position of the shower head 3 while the other twoopenings become cutoff from the water supply, as indicated in FIG. 5.

In order to secure the shower head 3 against inadvertent rotation, thedevice includes a ball detent 27 which is carried on the rear end of theshower head 3 and engages into a groove at each angular setting of theparticular shower fittings 19, 20 and 21. a

In the embodiment indicated in FIGS. 6 and 7, there is provided ashower, generally designated 1 which includes a head 28 in the form of atruncated pyramid as in the other embodiment. The head 28 is rotatablymounted by its hub portion 29 on a pipe section 30 which forms anextension of a water supply pipe 35. The head 28 is secured by means ofa screw 31 which is threaded into the closed end of the pipe section 30.The pipe section 30 is part of a housing body 32 which is pivotallysecured on a spherical head 34 of the water supply pipe 35 by means of acap nut 33. The shower head construction shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 differsfrom the shower head 3 of the other embodiment essentially in respect tothe fact that its side walls 16, 17 and 18 are inclined in an oppositesense in respect to the central axis 36. The head includes showerfittings 19, 20' and 21 which are similar to the fittings shown in theother embodiment, for example.

In order to adjust the showers of both embodiments, it is only necessaryto rotate the shower head 3 or the shower head 28 by 120 to a new detentposition.

Instead of providing the rotary shower head 3 or 23 with threedifi'erent jet fittings, any number may be provided, such as two, ormore than three, with a correspondingly shaped form of shower head.

While specific embodiments of the invention have been shown anddescribed in detail to illustrate the application of the principles ofthe invention, it will be understood that the invention may be embodiedotherwise without departing from such principles.

What is claimed is:

1. A shower construction comprising a water supply pipe having alongitudinally extending water delivery bore closed at its outer end anda transverse bore for the discharge passage connecting the delivery boreadjacent the closed outer endterminating in a planar end face,said watersupply pipe having an elongated central tubular pipe portion with saidwater delivery bore and a surrounding outer hollow supply pipe housingsurrounding said central tubular pipe portion being substantiallyshorter in longitudinal dimension and terminating in a parting planespaced longitudinally inwardly from the closed outer end of said supplypipe, a shower head having a central hub portion rotatable on the closedend of said water supply pipe and an outer surrounding hollow headhousing with an outer surface flush with the outer surface of saidhollow supply pipe housing, said hub portion having a supply pipe boreinto which the closed end planar end face of said water supply pipeextends, a pivot bolt engaged through said planar end face, said headhaving a plurality of angularly spaced radially extending waterdischarge conduits each terminating in a distinctive discharge fitting,said head being rotatable about said bolt relative to said water supplypipe to selectively align a water discharge conduit with the transversebore discharge of said water supply pipe in different angular positionsof said head relative to said supply pipe, said head being of apolygonal form and having a plurality of sides each with a separatedischarge conduit having a distinct discharge fitting thereon.

2. A shower construction, according to claim 1, wherein the hollow headhousing is threaded at its end opposite to said closed outer end andtapers outwardly from said threaded end to said closed outer end, saidhead tapering outwardly from the juncture of the outer housing portionof said head with the outer housing portion of said water supply pipe.

3. A shower construction according to claim 1, including a ring packingsurrounding said transverse bore discharge passage between said watersupply pipe and said head, said angularly spaced water dischargeconduits of said head being selectively alignable within the ringpacking.

4. A shower construction according to claim 1, wherein said head andsaid supply pipe have abutting wall surfaces with detent means definedtherebetween impeding rotation of said head relative to said supply pipewhen said transverse bore discharge passage is aligned with a selectiveone of said water discharge conduits.

1. A shower construction comprising a water supply pipe having alongitudinally extending water delivery bore closed at its outer end anda transverse bore for the discharge passage connecting the delivery boreadjacent the closed outer end terminating in a planar end face, saidwater supply pipe having an elongated central tubular pipe portion withsaid water deLivery bore and a surrounding outer hollow supply pipehousing surrounding said central tubular pipe portion beingsubstantially shorter in longitudinal dimension and terminating in aparting plane spaced longitudinally inwardly from the closed outer endof said supply pipe, a shower head having a central hub portionrotatable on the closed end of said water supply pipe and an outersurrounding hollow head housing with an outer surface flush with theouter surface of said hollow supply pipe housing, said hub portionhaving a supply pipe bore into which the closed end planar end face ofsaid water supply pipe extends, a pivot bolt engaged through said planarend face, said head having a plurality of angularly spaced radiallyextending water discharge conduits each terminating in a distinctivedischarge fitting, said head being rotatable about said bolt relative tosaid water supply pipe to selectively align a water discharge conduitwith the transverse bore discharge of said water supply pipe indifferent angular positions of said head relative to said supply pipe,said head being of a polygonal form and having a plurality of sides eachwith a separate discharge conduit having a distinct discharge fittingthereon.
 2. A shower construction, according to claim 1, wherein thehollow head housing is threaded at its end opposite to said closed outerend and tapers outwardly from said threaded end to said closed outerend, said head tapering outwardly from the juncture of the outer housingportion of said head with the outer housing portion of said water supplypipe.
 3. A shower construction according to claim 1, including a ringpacking surrounding said transverse bore discharge passage between saidwater supply pipe and said head, said angularly spaced water dischargeconduits of said head being selectively alignable within the ringpacking.
 4. A shower construction according to claim 1, wherein saidhead and said supply pipe have abutting wall surfaces with detent meansdefined therebetween impeding rotation of said head relative to saidsupply pipe when said transverse bore discharge passage is aligned witha selective one of said water discharge conduits.